1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to airfoils. In particular, the present invention relates to an apparatus for restraining and deploying an airfoil and a method of using the apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
Vehicles that traverse a fluid medium, such as rockets, missiles, projectiles, torpedoes, pods, drones, and the like generally have one or more airfoils, such as wings, fins, or other such control surfaces, which are used to stabilize and/or steer the vehicle as it moves through the fluid medium. It is often desirable to fold, rotate, or pivot such control surfaces so that the vehicle can be stored in a smaller space, such as within a munitions dispenser, a munition ejector rack, an aircraft internal weapons bay carriage, a rocket, a missile, a launch canister, or the like. When such a vehicle is launched, biasing members, such as springs, are used to urge the control surfaces into their flight or operational configurations.
Conventional airfoil deployment mechanisms urge the airfoils associated therewith in one step from a stowed or folded configuration to a deployed or unfolded configuration. In other words, when a conventional airfoil deployment mechanism is activated, the airfoil or airfoils associated with the deployment mechanism are released and move to their unfolded, fully deployed configurations. Typically, the airfoils of such a vehicle are configured to the unfolded position just after the vehicle is deployed. Because the vehicle's deployment velocity is often slow relative to the operational velocity of the vehicle, the airfoils present significant aerodynamic drag. Accordingly, the vehicle may have difficulties in attaining aerodynamic stability.
Moreover, when conventional, stowable airfoils are deployed, their positions may oscillate between the fully deployed positions and positions just short of the fully deployed positions. Such oscillations result in changes to the aerodynamic characteristics of the airfoils and inefficient airfoil aerodynamic operation.
Clips or other such structures are often used to restrain the control surfaces in their stowed configuration. When the vehicle is launched, the clips are removed from the vehicle, often by the launcher, which allows the control surfaces to be urged into their flight or operational configuration.
Problems may arise, however, if one or more of the clips are not removed from the vehicle. In such a situation, the restrained control surface may inhibit the launched vehicle's ability to properly maneuver, causing the vehicle to become aerodynamically or hydrodynamically unstable. The removed clips may also cause damage if they impact other equipment near the launch site.
In some conventional designs, retractable pins are used to restrain the control surfaces in their stowed configuration. Upon launching the vehicle, the pins are retracted by an actuator, which allows the control surfaces to move to their flight or operational configurations. Such restraining systems are often bulky and heavy, which may impact the performance of the vehicle.
While there are many ways known in the art to restrain and deploy airfoils, considerable room for improvement remains.